Accessibility statement
CAUTtools is used by technicians in practice rooms and hallways, by administrators at a desk, and by anyone on campus who scans a QR tag to report a broken key. All of them should be able to use it.
Conformance target
We build to WCAG 2.2 Level AA. That target covers both this website and the CAUTtools application.
This is a statement of the standard we design and test against, based on our own evaluation. It is not a claim of independently audited full conformance — see "Assessment approach" below.
Why this matters for your institution
Public colleges and universities are covered by Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Department of Justice's 2024 rule on web and mobile accessibility sets WCAG 2.1 Level AA as the technical standard, with compliance dates that have already passed for larger public entities and arrive in April 2027 for smaller ones. Institutions receiving federal financial assistance also have obligations under Section 504, and federal agencies under Section 508.
Procured software is part of that obligation. We target WCAG 2.2 AA, which incorporates 2.1 AA, so adopting CAUTtools should not create a new accessibility gap in your estate.
What is in place
- Keyboard. Every interactive control is reachable and operable by keyboard, in a logical order, with a visible focus indicator. No keyboard traps.
- Structure. Semantic headings in correct order, landmark regions, a skip link to main content, and labelled navigation.
- Forms. Every field has a persistent visible label associated with its control. Errors are announced, described in text, and explain how to fix the problem rather than only marking a field red.
- Colour. Text meets AA contrast ratios. Colour is never the only means of conveying information — status, availability, and validation all carry a text or shape cue as well.
- Motion. Animation is decorative only and is disabled for anyone whose system requests reduced motion. Nothing flashes.
- Zoom and reflow. Layouts reflow to 320px and support 200% text scaling without loss of content or function.
- Targets. Touch targets are sized for use on a phone, in a hallway, one-handed.
- Assistive technology. Custom controls expose name, role, and value. The workload calculator's sliders announce both the multiplier and its plain-language meaning.
Known limitations
Stated plainly, because a statement that claims no barriers is not credible:
- Uploaded photographs. Institutions upload their own instrument images. Alternative text quality depends on what the uploader writes, and we cannot guarantee it. We prompt for it; we cannot enforce good text.
- Imported calendar entries. Event titles come from the institution's own calendar system and inherit whatever clarity that source provides.
- Printed QR labels and reports. Print output is a visual medium. The same information is available on screen in accessible form, and every QR tag has its instrument code printed alongside it in text so it can be read and typed by someone who cannot scan.
- Legacy administrative screens. Some older screens in the application predate our current standard and are being brought up to it. We will identify their current state honestly in an accessibility conformance report.
Assessment approach
Evaluation to date is internal: manual keyboard testing, automated checks, contrast verification, and testing at mobile and desktop widths.
We have not yet commissioned an independent third-party audit, and no formal VPAT has been produced by an external evaluator. If your procurement process requires an Accessibility Conformance Report based on the VPAT 2.5 template, contact us: we will complete one for the version you are evaluating, and commission independent testing where your process requires it.
Feedback and barriers
If you hit a barrier in CAUTtools, tell us. Use whichever channel suits you:
- Email hello@cauttools.com.
- Call or text (505) 600-1077.
It helps if you can tell us the page or screen, what you were trying to do, and the assistive technology and browser you were using — but report it either way. A partial report is more useful than none.
We aim to acknowledge within two business days and to give you a fix or a timetable within ten business days. If something blocks you from completing a task, say so — we treat that as urgent and will find you a way through in the meantime.
If you are reporting on behalf of an institution and are not satisfied with our response, escalate to Chip Miller at hello@cauttools.com or (505) 600-1077.